We took the train one-way from Anchorage to Fairbanks in February 2020. We were early to the train station as all communication said to be there an hour before departure - there was only one other couple there before us. There's a very small coffee cart with muffins and bagels, but they didn't open for a little while and only had one person working the cart so service was slow. Not really any need to be exceptionally early to be fair, you only collect your tickets from the counter before getting on the train.
Onboard, the train carriages and seats were spacious and fun. My partner and I enjoyed swapping seats for who sat next to the window. The day we were on the train had spectacular sunny weather so we were lucky with the views. It was however exceptionally cold, with -35 Fahrenheit when we arrived into Fairbanks that evening. The train was cold at times and we had to ask the staff to turn on the heating (I actually don't believe it was even on as there were large metal things down by our feet which suddenly became hot after we spoke to the staff).
The food on the train was not great. We opted to sit in the 'dining cart' for lunch (along with what must have been the whole train) and were rushed through service very quickly. My partner literally had a hotdog and mine was a burger - not exactly fine dining experience. The other food cart had ice creams, coffee, sandwiches, pizza etc and was a come-and-go-as-you-please arrangement.
It was a lovely way to travel and we were extremely lucky with the weather and views, however I was expecting better service and to not have to sit in winter coats onboard the train. Furthermore, the people seated across from us happened to be seated in an emergency exit window which actually froze over throughout the course of the trip. It's inappropriate that they had paid the same as everyone else and couldn't see out of their window. The staff didn't do anything for these people. I felt so sorry for them and had this been my experience i'd be asking for a refund.
Overall, we had a lovely time and saw lots of Alaska including lots of wildlife, however the Alaska Railroad needs to prioritise service and could do with upgrading the trains.